Jay from Smoking saw what Mervin was doing and created Smoking traction (called magnetraction on the board through the license he got from them) but his is completely different. Its not as defined as any of the MTX boards Iíve seen, you have to eyeball it down the sidewall to properly see it. All my average gripes about MTX were gone with STX. I was able to lay down a hard euro carve no problem, it didnít buckle under the pressure, it was very stable, and super smooth. The board needed a bit more dampening even for being a 172. It definitely hauled ass and was a fun ride for sure. Pop wasnít super great; a little more in the tail would have made me a bit happier. Jay uses the same base as NS so I was stoked that it glided the same as all my NS boards.

For a midwide it seemed kind of narrow, but the edge hold was superb with the STX, and the side cut was great for carving. This board was stable off drops, jumps, and rollers. It was decent to butter around but not anything Iíd super rave about. Big thing with STX is to know that Jay doesnít order it from Mervin, he has it built for him using his design, which is a far mellower version of MTX, less, defined at the tip and tail contact point, and more between the feet. The pop on this board is great for boosting and felt fairly lively. At speeds there was minimal chatter so I wasnít sketching out about that.

53. 156 Ellis Bot with Ellis Lithiumís (08/09)

Stance 22.5 with 18 negative 15 goofy

Boots: Vans Fargo Boas size 10

Conditions: Fresh corduroy, sunny, perfect conditions

One Word: Hatchet

Rarely do I find a board that rides like my old Hatchet. This board did just that. Anyways I was out riding with one of Ellisís sales guy so we were just doing warm up runs and seeing as he just got in from Sea level I had to take it easy on him. Right off the bat this thing was a pop o matic machine. Came close to landing a cab 5 flatland on this. Side cut was great for turn initiation and edged perfectly fine. Torsionally this board was perfect for what it is, a higher end park board. Switch was a breeze, and pressing was insane. Definitely a fun board. The bindings had a minor issues I was warned about but I didnít notice it. The disk cover needs some work, but the straps and ratchets were really good.

54. 162 Smoking Mike Basich Pro with Ellis Lithiumís (08/09)

Stance: 22 with 18 negative 15 goofy

Boots: Vans Fargo boaís size 10

Conditions: Freshies with blue skies

One Word: Stiffmeister

Board is relatively stiff laterally, with a bit more torsional give. The STX grips really well at speeds. I ended up making speed runs with Jay the owner of Smoking and doing some pow laps on the backside of Keystone. This board was stable off the various drops I did with it, and maching through the POW lips was intense. Tree riding it was fun and nimble. The bindings actually complimented it pretty well too. The shape is a bit weird as itís all blunted out and snow would pour over it onto the top sheet, which is no bueno for POW riding. Popping took a bit of effort with this board and it was a tad sluggish, but then again its Mikes pro model, so itís his specs. As of this writing thereís only 2 of them in the world.

The board is absolutely sick, super light, and poppy. While being stable at speeds with minimal chatter. The bindings however suck donkey balls. The board was stable off small drops, great for popping, easy to jib, has a great shape for doing tweaked out grabs. The bindings took forever to set up and ended up having 3 people work on it before they got it done for me. The toe strap is a weak ass design at best, it grips right over the big toe and the side of the big toe. The heel strap, which has too put way more torque on it to feel locked in, actuates it and even then I was still feeling play. The damn thing crippled my feet so bad its still hurting 5 days later. There was no cush to that heel strap and it just tweaked my foot bad. This binding needs serious work. The toe clip thing is cheap ass plastic and doesnít do shit to hold you in tightly.

56. 153 Ellis Heist with Ellis Lithiumís (08/09)

Stance 22.5 with 18 negative 15 goofy

Boots: Vans Fargo Boas size 10

Conditions: Some sun, tree powder, bit windy

One Word: Jibtasticulastic

This board is a jib stick took no effort to do weak tail blocks and presses. The pop on it was ok but nothing special, edge to edge it was fine but unstable. In the Pow Pow it sunk, but then again itís a little 153. The weight of it is ridiculously low and its super soft. Put it in the price point jib stick category.

57. 158 DC Devun Walsh Pro with Atomic Black Russians (08/09)

Stance 22.5 with 18 negative 15 goofy

Boots: Vans Fargo Boas size 10

Conditions: Overcast, windy, pure crap

One Word: Slaptacular

Normally I donít perform slappyís on boards but this one just called for it so it was slap, slappy, splaptastic. This one of the 3 DC boards Iíve ridden was the most fun. Great pop, just a hair stiff in the nose/tail, but with a fucking amazing side cut, and edge hold. This board was stable yet playful, but itís a lot like other boards on the market so would I buy it probably not. The bindings have changed a lot with that new high back, straps, base construction etc. etc. Ratchets need some minor tweaks but other than that it was a good binding very damp as well.

58. 164 Flow Solitude WX with NXT FX (08/09)

Stance 22.5 with 18 negative 15 goofy

Boots: Vans Fargo boaís size 10

Conditions: pure shit

One Word: BLAH

I loved this set at Loveland, but this time around it was no bueno. Probably because my rep didnít set me up it was one of their in house guys. Anyways the board is a hair softer torsionally, but due to the fact my bindings were so fuckered up and I wasnít dialed in it sucked balls. It felt like my heel was lifting in the binding, while the toe strap was just held wickedly down. I felt like I was slipping out on edge because of this sensation and it just wasnít that much fun at all. Bindings had the heel slip issue, I think they put forward lean on it which is the lame. All in all not a happy camper on this one.

59. 155 Rome Agent with Rome Uniteds (08/09)

Stance: 22.5 with 18 negative 15 goofy

Boots: Vans Fargo boaís size 10

Conditions: pure shit

One word: Limp

This board rode like a fucking graft. This board is not the agent I was so disappointed with it. Way too much torsional and lateral give. This is the first board in a long time I heard the death rattle from the chatter and got scared. I felt everything in this board. The pop was good, and the side cut was nice except when I hard carved it and then it was topple over time. The uniteds suck balls big time. Too soft, toecaps suck, flex is whacked out. There was no rigidity from the binding and it would just fold over. Felt like riding a Burton mission from 2000.

60. 159 Ride Concept UL with K2 Formulaís (07/08)

Stance 22.5 with 18 negative 15 goofy

Boots: Northwave Decades size 10 (08/09)

Conditions: Golden

One Word: Mislabeled

Ok so everyone knows Iím not a ride fan boy, or even impressed, or even cares for them. Frankly this board is definitely mislabeled. Itís a 749.99-dollar park board and thatís where it excels. Would I take this board out as my all mountain freestyle board like they suggest, fuck no. This board has a lot of torsional give thatís for sure and makes it a stable butter board similar to a Never Summer SL. Popping on this thing is decent if you actuate the sweet spot. This board straight up kills it in the pipe though; I canít deny that at all. No matter what I threw at this board it just wanted to slay the pipe, probably the highest airs Iíve ever done in the pipe since I rode a Dragon back in 99. On jumps this thing could make you or break you, but the reduced weight of the Tek Style top sheet was nice. Problem with the top sheet is how much it frays, my god it frays like no other. The side cut on this thing is so so, I couldnít carve as hard as Iíd like because it would wash out just a bit, and edge hold could be dicey when on edge going over ice. Now the boots are the golden gem. I havenít been a Northwave fan since my KJís lead to the foot problems I have now. But fuck these boots were amazing; I have a calcium deposit on my right anklebone that has been killing me all winter. I put these boots on after pulling hard for 3 minutes, but once in man the fit is perfect. I did get a pressure over my right foots pinky toe, but in all fairness that toe is so messed up I canít fault the boot. These boots are cushy as hell, like ungodly cushy. The weight is way more than my Fargoís which I consider a heavy boot. The flex is stiff I think an 8 on their scale, but my god its supportive. Also the speed lacing is amazing with the pulleys for eyelets but the handles are so small they hurt my hand when I give a hard tug. I used the stock insoles something I donít do anymore and my god talk about comfort, this boot was designed for a flat-footed rider. Just going to add now that Iíve started putting a bunch of days on this boot its packing out at an astronomical rate.